Update 11:52 p.m.
The College Republicans are offering incentives to its members if they attend a campaign trip for tea party-backed candidate Christine O’Donnell this weekend, according to an e-mail over the CR distribution list.
The e-mail outlined the incentives for the trip, which include a $50, free food, transportation and lodging at “a beautiful hotel.”
Sinead Casey, the director for public relations from the CR’s, said the $50 is in the form of a gift card, not cash, and is intended for members to pay for costs accrued on the trip.
Jake Wolf, the chairman of the CR’s, said a private donor is paying for the trip, but declined to say who the donor is.
If the CR’s gather up 30 members for the trip, the private donor will award the student organization $2,000 for future programming, Wolf added.
The e-mail text is below. The emphasis is from the e-mail.
We are still DESPERATELY looking for people to sign up for the campaign trip to Delaware this weekend. Please attend! Our candidates in Delaware desperately need help! A gift of 50 dollars, free food, transportation, and lodging at a beautiful hotel in Delaware will be provided to ANYONE who comes on this trip. YOU WILL GET PAID FOR GOING! THIS WILL BE THE EXPERIENCE OF YOUR YEAR HERE AT GW! Additionally, the campaigns will give our College Republicans chapter 2,000 dollars for future programming if we get 30 people to go. Please go!
Wolf said he did not approve the e-mail before it was sent over the Listserv, calling the tone of the e-mail “an overreaction.”
The CR’s later sent a message over the Listserv titled “More information on DELAWARE and Clarification- The trip will be fun!”
We are still looking for people to sign up for the campaign trip to Delaware this weekend. Please attend! Our candidates in Delaware desperately need help! Free room, transportation, and lodging at a beautiful hotel in Delaware will be provided to anyone who comes on the trip. A 50 dollar per diem will also be provided. Please go, it will be fun!
Wolf said he doesn’t think O’Donnell’s negative press coverage is deterring students from attending the trip. O’Donnell – who seemingly came from nowhere to clinch the Republican nomination for the Delaware Senate seat – has gotten attention for her comments about “dabbling into witchcraft” and her anti-masturbation stance.
“Before we announced any of these incentives we had 16 people sign up, which is more than we had for Linda McMahon,” Wolf said, referencing the Republican Senate nominee in Connecticut.
Wolf added that it is common for the CR’s to receive per diems to attend campaign trips.
“I know the [College Democrats] don’t have that, but for most of our trips we get $30 to $50 for each member to cover costs,” Wolf said. “That’s normal.”
Casey added that O’Donnell is not the only candidate the CR’s are campaigning for in Delaware. The group will be campaigning for Republican Congressional nominee Glen Urquhart, and “and local Republican state candidates depending on the district.”
